Recession bites as Leeds City Council property sales plummet EXCLUSIVE

David Marsh

Cash-strapped Leeds City Council’s hopes of boosting its coffers by selling surplus properties and land have been badly dented by the economic downturn.

Figures show that at the height of the market in 2007-08 the council netted £21.6m from sales – with seven sites sold for over £1m and eight for over £500,000.

But the bubble has burst and over the past few years average annual sales have slumped by 66 per cent to around £7m.

The disposal of brownfield sites, which include vacant building and previously developed land, brought in £12m in 2007-08 and has slumped to an average of £2.4m in the four years since.

A council report says: “Since the height of the market in 2007-08 there has been a marked downturn in the sale and development of all council-owned sites, reflected in both a fall in land values and the volume of land the council has been able to sell for development.”